Obama to tap Jack Lew for Treasury secretary

Jan. 9, 2013
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President Obama and Jack Lew / Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images

by David Jackson, USA TODAY

by David Jackson, USA TODAY

President Obama is poised to nominate White House chief of staff Jack Lew for Treasury secretary, perhaps as early as Thursday.

Lew would replace Timothy Geithner, who has announced he wants to leave the Treasury Department in mid-January.

An official who has been briefed on the process confirmed the selection, speaking on condition of anonymity because Obama has not made the official announcement.

News of the Lew appointment came as Labor Secretary Hilda Solis announced she would not return for a second term that starts Jan. 20.

Meanwhile, White House officials said three other Cabinet members will be staying; Attorney General Eric Holder, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

Over the years, Lew, 57, has worked on many a budget battle as an aide in both Congress and the executive branch.â??â??

As an aide to Democratic House Speaker Tip O'Neill during the 1980s, Lew worked with President Ronald Reagan's White House on items such as the Social Security agreement of 1983 and the tax overhaul bill of 1986.

As a budget adviser to President Bill Clinton, Lew worked with counterparts to House Speaker Newt Gingrich and other Republicans during the fiscal disputes of the 1990s.

Lew has been budget director for both presidents Obama and Clinton.

White House spokesman Jay Carney declined to comment on news reports of Lew's prospective move, but praised him as "a remarkably capable chief of staff" and an "exceptional public servant."

As with so many presidential aides, the Treasury secretary's primary goals are "economic growth and job creation," Carney said.

The Senate would have to confirm Lew's nomination.

One prominent Republican -- Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, top GOP member of the Senate Budget Committee -- said he would try to block Lew's confirmation, saying Lew misled Congress about administration plans to reduce the national debt.

During his tenure as Obama's budget director, Lew said during a 2011 congressional hearing: "Our budget will get us, over the next several years, to the point where we can look the American people in the eye and say we're not adding to the debt anymore; we're spending money that we have each year."

Said Sessions: "To 'look the American people in the eye' and make such a statement remains the most direct and important false assertion during my entire time in Washington."

Before moving to the White House in 2010 to serve as budget director, Lew served as deputy secretary of State for management and resources, giving him experience in international economics.

The president made Lew his chief of staff in early 2012, replacing William Daley. The year since has been marked by Obama's successful re-election bid and an ongoing series of running arguments with House Republicans over taxes and spending, including the recent talks leading to a "fiscal cliff" deal.

Obama, less than two weeks from his second inauguration, has been busy filling top jobs for his new term.

Late last month, Obama nominated Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., to be secretary of State. Earlier this week, he picked former Nebraska senator Chuck Hagel for Defense secretary and White House adviser John Brennan for the CIA.